Stewart's Shops and SUNY Empire State College Offer Scholarships to Community College Graduates

(Saratoga Springs, NY – July 1, 2010) Stewart’s Shops and SUNY Empire State College are providing scholarships for community college graduates who want to earn a four-year degree at Empire State College. The Stewart’s Shops – Empire State College Scholarship Program is offering 28 scholarships in the amount of $1,000 each to students who attend community college in counties where Stewart’s has stores. Residents of these counties are served by three of Empire State College’s regional centers: The Northeast, Central New York, and Hudson Valley centers. Students can enroll in any one of 14 locations where the college has offices, or they can study via distance learning. This is the sixth year that Stewart’s Shops has funded scholarships to help community college graduates complete degrees at Empire State College, which focuses on adult learners.

The scholarships will be awarded on the basis of need and academic promise. Scholarships will be available this fall to graduates of Adirondack Community College, Clinton Community College, Columbia-Greene Community College, Dutchess Community College, Fulton-Montgomery Community College, Herkimer County Community College, Hudson Valley Community College, Jefferson Community College, Mohawk Valley Community College, North Country Community College, Orange County Community College, Schenectady County Community College, Sullivan County Community College and Ulster County Community College. The scholarship program is a natural partnership for the two organizations, both of which maintain a statewide presence.

The application deadline is Friday, July 16. For more information and to complete an application online, please go to: www.esc.edu/stewartsshops.

“Education can be life-changing in the best sense,” said Susan Dake, president of Stewart's Foundation. “A scholarship for an adult not only impacts the student but often a whole family. Stewart’s Shops is proud to be of assistance.”

The company was founded in 1945 when the Dake family purchased a dairy and ice cream shop from Donald Stewart of Ballston Spa. Today Stewart’s Shops can be found in over 30 counties within a 150-mile radius of Saratoga. From Plattsburgh to Newburgh, Watertown to Rutland, the company maintains its small-town feel and motto, “We are closer to you.”

SUNY Empire State College was established in 1971 to offer adult learners the opportunity to earn associate, bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the State University of New York. Students learn through independent studies, online courses, seminars and residencies. They also may earn credit for prior college-level learning from work and life experience. The college serves more than 20,000 students worldwide with 34 locations in New York state and online. For more information, visit www.esc.edu.